During her time as dean, Murray has also worked to reduce gender imbalance within SEAS student and its faculty bodies. Women represent about one-third of SEAS undergraduate concentrators, according to FAS statistics, while female professors make up 16 percent of the school’s ladder faculty.

Computer Science professor Harry R. Lewis ’68 said that though Murray’s announcement surprised him, he understood “her reasons for moving on.”

“Major decisions about the place of engineering at Harvard have been made under her leadership,” Lewis added. “We’ve been very fortunate to have such an outstanding scientist lead us through this period of rapid change.”

According to Area Dean for Applied Physics Eric Mazur, Murray’s leadership has been integral to the school’s current path.

“I’m full of admiration, but at the same time, I’m sad that she’s stepping down because she clearly has kept the school on a fantastic trajectory over these past five years," he said.

Murray said in the interview that she hoped her legacy would be one of “a focus on liberal-arts based engineering education” at the School, adding that she was most proud of her emphasis on students and their learning.

—Staff writer Francesca Annicchiarico can be reached at francesca.annicchiarico@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @FRAnnicchiarico.

—Staff writer John Finnegan can be reached at finnegan@thecrimson.com. Follow him on Twitter @finneganspake.